What was the name of the Allied statement that demanded Japan’s surrender in July 1945?

The Potsdam Declaration was the Allied statement that demanded Japan’s surrender in July 1945.

Issued on July 26, 1945, it was released by the United States, the United Kingdom, and China during the Potsdam Conference. The declaration called for the unconditional surrender of Japan’s armed forces and warned that refusal would bring “prompt and utter destruction.”

The document set out broad surrender terms, including the disarmament of Japanese forces, the removal of leaders associated with militarism, and the limitation of Japanese sovereignty to territories determined by the Allies. It did not explicitly mention the atomic bomb or clearly settle the future status of Emperor Hirohito.

Japan initially did not accept the declaration. After the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings and the Soviet entry into the war, Japan’s leaders accepted its terms. The declaration later provided an important basis for the Allied occupation of Japan.